Mardi Gras Flat-athon

So I rolled out of bed at 4:45am on Sunday and got my stuff together before heading to the Mardi Gras Marathon start line. It was a bit chilly outside, so we backtracked and stopped by a teammate's place to pick up some extra leg warmers (mine were in the mail). Traffic was light, but very few roads were open. After weaving through the road closures we finally showed our All-Access Pass to an on-duty cop (about 200 yards from the start line) and parked in one of the reserved lots.

Parking privileges granted!

All was well until we took our bikes out of the trunk and noticed that my bike had a flat. The previous flat had been four days earlier, but I thought to myself, Okay, no problem, I have a spare tube to save the day! Five minutes later, and within three pedal strokes, I heard the distinct pfffffffff of a pinch flat (on a parking lot full of seashells...yes, seashells in New Orleans). Go figure. Apparently, we didn't get the tire all the way onto the rim and effectively destroyed any chance we had of escorting the lead car of the Mardi Gras Marathon.

So my teammate and I put our bikes back into his SUV and started driving. He had competed in a fencing tournament the day before and wanted to unwind a bit, so we weaved (again) through the road closures and found a store that sells Blue Bell Mardi Gras ice cream. In addition to the ice cream, we made sure to pick up soda (to make ice cream floats) and banana bread (to make our 7:30am junk food breakfast seem more legitimate). We looked a bit out of place showing up to the grocery store in our Tulane kits, but the cashier and bagger both commented on our "athletic abilities," which felt pretty good. But my favorite quote of the day would have to be my one from my teammate (right after we left the grocery store):

"Let's compare our potential morning with our actual morning. Our actual morning involved driving around in a warm car, buying ice cream, pastries, and soda, and having fun. And our potential morning involved riding around in the cold, doing inane tasks for a grumpy old man."
-Teammate who shall go unnamed

Us (the lead cyclists) in the ice cream aisle while the race was going on.

This was a pretty interesting flavor, to say the least.

Once we demolished the half gallon of ice cream, banana bread, and soda, I decided to take a nap and then go for a run. A very long run. A very long run through some shady neighborhoods. I'm still recovering from the delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) that came from the run, but it was worth it. Four pounds of ice cream is no small feat, and running afterwards probably isn't on the list of the most logical things to do after such a meal. But I did it anyway.

Fast forward to Valentine's Day (the best day of the year to receive care packages). I got a package in the mail, complete with cupcakes, assorted Brazilian chocolates from Nestle Brasil and Garoto, Japanese Pocky, English muffins, cycling socks by DeFeet, and leg warmers. It's pretty hard to beat that (even though I did receive four pints of ice cream for Valentine's Day the night before, which was pretty win-tastic).

I had to study all day (and all night) during Valentine's Day, so last night I baked some heart-shaped Valentine's Day Funfetti cupcakes (as well as a funfetti cake) for various friends. Oh, and strawberry flavored bread (which I kept mostly for myself). It was a relaxing night that helped me take my mind off of the battery acid that's running through my leg muscles.

Funfetti cupcakes.

This got excellent reception from the ladies.